Homer
Background Homer never knew his biological parents, his egg was separated from them before he had the chance. He was raised in a city where most people had never even heard of Dragonborn before, let alone seen one. He was "adopted" by the local mafia, known only by the ironic name "The Union." Their Leader, "The General," gave the newly hatched Dragonborn to his youngest son as a pet. The two grew up together thinking of each other as brothers, even though the adults around them had only contempt for the "filthy lizard." No one else even knew the Dragonborn could talk, and he only ever conversed with his brother in private. The Union was a well diversified criminal enterprise, but their day-to-day operating costs were mostly covered by protection money paid out by local businesses and particular citizens. The Union operated in a city rich from crusades of generations past. Many yearned for the wars of old, though they had no concept of the horrors they were really asking for. In the eyes of those who worked for the Union, the wealth of the city's nobles was a wealth unearned. To earn gold was to be alive, once you died that gold should die with you. Members of the union were buried with their gold, though grave robbing was seen as a respectable profession. The Union always made a point of not harassing the truly poor. They were interested in, and practically worshiped, gold and other other physical forms of wealth. They saw no value in wasting time trying to ring out crumbs from those who had none. Though they were known to put the destitute to work, either for themselves or a "client" of theirs. Their credo is law. Gold is love. Gold is life." left them sicked at the idea of someone living without and for no gold, despite their willingness to stab a man in the back and rob him blind. The organization stood for the power of wealth and the power of their leader as the true source of wealth for its members. They claimed (though this was never verified) to be richer than the government they harassed, opposed, and manipulated. To them and their members, this gave them the moral authority to run the city, even though by all accounts they really only acted and schemed to increase their own wealth. They would also take other physical possessions if gold was not forthcoming, but only begrudgingly, and only if some profit or gain. Though it was not unheard of them drafting children into their ranks, though only if a "client" had fallen on hard times and had to cancel their service. Homer the Bard Once they were deemed old enough, the two youngsters were taken to learn the business, following along on a collection run. The last stop on the simple route was a music shop and the youngsters were sent in to take care of it themselves. However, this was not the usual day of collection for this shop, so the elderly owner did not have the full sum of gold on him at that moment. The man apologized profusely, and said that he could have the gold as soon as that evening if they returned later. The two boys were well aware of the protocol in this situation, and so grabbed an instrument or value equal to what was missing: a harp. Immediately upon stepping outside they were teased and told off. "What? Is the filthy lizard a music lover?" For the first time in his life, the Dragonborn had earned gold, the same as any other man. For the first time he felt alive. For the first time he stood on two legs and spoke to someone other than his brother. "Gold is law. Gold is love. Gold is life. That man had not enough of it, so we took equal value." The men were completely shocked and taken aback, and quickly took the two boys home to report this to The General. The General was not surprised because he, unlike his men, was not an idiot. He knew what a Dragonborn was, since he was the one who took their egg. Though he was a racist, he had always seen the value in this scaly creature. However, appearances matter and the "talking lizard" rumor had spread throughout the city and needed to be dealt with in a public way. Always with an eye to profit, The General set about dispensing with the rumors by completely playing into them and had the Dragonborn taking harp lessons immediately. Not soon after, tickets were being sold for people to come see the amazing harp playing dragon. He developed a new nickname, Homer, for one of the great Bards of old. Though at first it was said sarcastically, eventually it became sincere. Homer took to the name as well; it was better than being called a filthy lizard all the time. Also, it was a name he had earned, so it was another thing that had value to him. Eventually the hype around his shows died down, the mystique was gone and now the whole city knew what Dragonborn were. He would still play at the bar regularly, but he was of greater value being put to real work. The Rise of the Little General Homer's main job with The Union continued to be going on collection runs with The General's son. The two had a knack for it, managing to form a decent rapport with their clients that kept things running smoothly without any confrontational incidents. The General’s son had picked up his own monicker, “The Little General,” and it too started out sarcastic. However, the quality of his work, his ability to make friends, and his “pet dragon,” were quickly making him a force to be reckoned with. Within a year, the duo had transitioned from shaking down local shops, to collecting from some of the city's wealthier citizens, with a significant portion of the city government on their personal payroll. It was now generally assumed that The Little General would eventually succeed his father as head of The Union, an idea that previously would have been considered heresy. Obviously though, there were those within the organization who wished to seize that power for themselves. There were several attempts on The Little General's life, but each thwarted attempt only served to solidify his political strength. The Fall of The Golden City Eventually, Homer and The Littler General cracked a secret that had always alluded The Union. The plans for the yearly supply shipment to the city. If they could seize that, they'd have an unprecedented stranglehold on the city. The plan was simple, The General himself would lead a large diversionary assault upon City Hall and the heart of the city, forcing the army's intervention. At the same time, The Little General would take a much smaller clandestine force of The Union's best men to seize the dessert caravan. Homer had become a kind of mascot for The Union and so it was decided that he should be a part of the diversionary force. The Union quickly stormed City Hall and fortified the surrounding area. The army responded as expected, moving a massive force into position, ready to take back the area once The Union inevitably retreated. This song and dance was not completely unheard of, and both sides usually tried to run through it with as few casualties as possible. Unfortunately everything did not go according to plan. No one knows what happened out in the desert, but the Caravan never arrived in the city, and none of The Union agents who had gone to seize it were seen again either. Some claimed to have seen a massive magical explosion off in the desert but what caused it, if that was the Caravan, or if such a thing even happened at all was never confirmed with the evidence lost to the sand. The city was in crisis. The Union forces had waited too long to retreat, and now could no longer do so safely. On the other side, the army could not storm City Hall without suffering heavy casualties, something its leadership had no interest in doing. If anything they saw this prolonged conflict as an opportunity to increase their own power and “restore order” to the rest of the city. Two years later and the city was still locked in a military standoff. The union controlled about 30% of the city, the army 50%. The rest belonged to the city's noble class and their personal defense force. They had gone into complete lock-down once the conflict broke out, and not been heard from since. The General had grown increasingly isolated, locked atop The Union's tower. His name still held power, but he was rarely seen, and even then only by a handful of men, including Homer. One day Homer entered The General's chamber to find him holding one of those men in his hand by the face in such a strong grip that blood was streaming out of it. The bodies of several other men were strewn about the room, all with vicious wounds. The General spoke to Homer with cold dejection in his voice: “This city is dead. Gold, its lifeblood, no longer flows freely. It sits inside the corpses of old men, myself included. We have lost our right to the future. There will be no tomorrow here.” He then walked over to the window and smashed the man in his hand through it, holding him there as he flailed helplessly. The General then looked back at Homer. “You are not of our blood. Our fate is not your fate. I took your fate for the gain of me and my son. I have no more use for you. Leave this city. Find your own tomorrow.” He then dropped the man. Homer left the city that night, heading off into the dessert, away from the only world he had ever known. At the break of dawn a magical burst emanated from the city, and all the great towers of the city began to melt into shimmering golden goo. It all came rushing down, and very quickly disappeared into a massive sandstorm. Very few people had ever been to the Golden oasis in the desert, so once it was gone it quickly became merely a place of legend, something the few who even knew about it assumed was just a story. A New Life Homer eventually found his way to the heart of J'lothan, taking odd jobs where he could find them, driven purely by his desire for gold. Traits Homer was raised to be unquestionably loyal to an organization that no longer exists. One that only valued loyalty and wealth. He continues to follow its ideals as best he can, but he has no experience really thinking for himself. Bereft of loyalty to anything left in the world, his only remaining goal is life in the accumulation of wealth. His Dragonborn nature feeds into this, and every night he dreams of lying upon a giant mountain of gold. However, in his heart, he secretly desires to find another group to live and die for. Unlike many thieves, his lust for gold is not shortsighted. It's not always about acting for a small short term gold gain. It's about the security of consistent work or a legit big score that makes it worth giving that up. If he finds a group he believes in that can keep him swimming in gold, his loyalty could be permanently purchased. Bonds *I implicitly trust Baern , as they've proven reliable in times of need. *Root got me involved in a questionable adventure once before and I’m having second thoughts about it now. *Thia does not understand me or my culture. I will explain myself, as long as it takes. *Torvak left me to hang out to dry once, and they still have yet to make amends. Category:Player Characters Category:Bard